Inexpensive Spiritual Fitness

Fitness advocates tell us that it’s not necessary to have an expensive treadmill or specialized equipment to get a great physical workout at home. For example, one fitness advocate uses a common toolbox for stepping exercises and lifts soup cans to work his shoulder muscles. Other trainers encourage people to use jump ropes, chairs, and brooms in conditioning routines. They see exercise as a matter of will — not wealth.

The same principle holds true with spiritual fitness. While Bible dictionaries, concordances, commentaries, and other Bible helps assist us in a study of the Bible, we can begin spiritual training with nothing more than the Bible itself and the willingness to learn.

Paul urged his young protege Timothy to:

“Exercise yourself toward godliness. For bodily exercise profits a little, but godliness is profitable for all things, having promise of the life that now is and of that which is to come” (1 Timothy 4:7-8).

Dear reader, it requires no money to study a Bible passage or memorize a verse of Scripture. We don’t need special equipment or materials to pray for a friend, give thanks to God, or sing His praise.

We just need to begin where we are, with what we have, right now.

—Mike Riley, Gospel Snippets